South Korea steps up Linux use

South Korea has today announced that it will be launching a government-wide initiative to promote the free use of the Linux OS in its public sector. The move may well help to reduce the market dominance of Microsoft.

The Ministry of Information and Communication said it will provide a total of 3 billion won (US$2.95 million) for government agencies which want to use the Linux and other open-source computer programs this year.

The government of South Korea says it has already seen a strong trend of adoption of Linux in its governmental agencies, and has also reported that they are seeing a number of organisations being interested in open source.